experience in Hamburg

Working abroad is never the same; everyone’s experience is different and very personal. The outcome depends on the place and people around you, but mostly it depends on YOU. Everyone who decides to live and work abroad for some time, should be ready to abandon the old ways of looking and seeing things for some time. To get the maximum out of the experience, it’s no good to only go and show your way of living, it’s useful for everybody to also try to understand the way and reasons behind the behavior of others. For me, its being in Hamburg and learning the North- German culture.


Hi! I am Vivek, a guy (23) from India, working in Germanischer Llyod. My last living abroad experience was another 6-months AIESEC internship in the capital city of Ghana – in Accra. I was doing my marketing internship in a Media company and in the end was basically responsible for everything that happened to our brand new and old products. That’s Africa, where responsibilities are given by what you can do and not by designing a job description for you. Awesome experience!
Completed my term, went back to India and I was about to complete my Masters. The big question popped up, what next? I was young and in no way wanted to take up a serious job. There is much life after 30+ to do that. I knew one thing for sure; I wanted to see the world and make someone else pay for it. 2nd internship in Europe, why not? Add to that a totally unknown working environment. So that I could test my academic knowledge and challenge myself daily.
Due to AIESEC, now I am living and working in a culture so different from mine, I constantly had to challenge my ability to adapt, understand and accept. It was making me see new sides of myself, my home country and the whole world around me. Also a chance to meet people from around the world., Matt: guy from US, keeps life simple without any confusion (just left Hamburg), Alberto: great Guy from Costa Rica, Bab.la people, Letti: Girl from Italy, amazingly ability to keep balance between work and life, perfect in both, Ayumi: Girl from Japan, full of desire of enjoy life, Nathan: full of humour, Ercu: Guy from Istanbul, talented with music, Evans: nice IT guy from Kenya and many more. Each different but when all these come together, real meaning is given to words, “Party and unforgettable memories for a life time”.
Coming back to me, I believe I am still the same person who I was, I have the same values and many dreams and I still love humor, but I also know that now I have in many ways more experience. Some of my dreams have come true and some of them have grown bigger. I don’t only understand what I have read about the world, but also what I have seen in the world. I have many new friends, many great memories and lots of cool stories to tell. In a way the world has become smaller and I can see more connections between people and things. I have tested myself and my limits. I have become to appreciate and accept myself and others more than I did before.
I warmly recommend this kind of experience to everybody who is ambitious, adventurous and willing to challenge oneself and discover the world. No matter how much working experience You have, how many self development seminars You have attended or how much You have read about different countries, living and working in a totally different environment makes You discover and use even more new abilities in Yourself; it makes You understand and develop even bigger picture; it makes You appreciate what You already have and accept some more things just the way they are.
Sincerely yours,
Vivek